A Different Beginning
by Sancontoa
Summary: AU: What if that Halloween night so long ago someone else found out about the Potters death before Dumbledore? Harry dosen't have to grow up with the Dursley's, but at what price? PreHBP
1. A Different Beginning

_Disclamer: Everything except the plot belongs to J.K. Rowling_

_A/N: Hi everyone. Yes I know you all want me to go back and finish my other stories not start new ones, but this just came to me. I might keep it like this, but if you really want me too (i.e. leave a lot of reviews) I'll continue it. It will also be spell checked soon, but I just thought I'd put it up and see what you guys think. Ok I'll stop talking and let you start reading, oh and remember to review, thanks.  
  
P.S. This is an AU so the timing is way of. For example Sirius was caught a day later, but in this story he wasn't.  
  
P.P.S. I don't like this title, so if anyone has a suggestion, please tell me, thanks. I'll shut up now so you can read, lol._

** A Different Beginning**  
  
A lone figure ran down the halls of Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Anyone who knew her well would have guessed that something very upsetting had happened, for the women was crying. And Professor McGonagall never cried.  
  
Finally she reached her distention, the Great Hall, which was full of students enjoying the Halloween feast. She stood for a moment, knowing what she was about to say would horrify some of them, and amaze the rest. She sighed, squired her shoulders and marched into the Great Hall.  
  
Silence fell; the students it seemed knew something was wrong. McGonagall was actually frowning, she never frowned.  
  
"Professors and Students," she said in a grave voice, "I am afraid I have some terrible and wonderful news to tell you."  
  
It was as thought every person in the hall was holding his or her breath waiting to find out who had died. For that was what they knew happened, in these dark times, with Voldemort out there, no one was safe. Tonight something big must have happened, for McGonagall though all the deaths and all the destruction had never cried or frowned.  
  
"I am sorry to announce that Lily and James Potter where killed this evening by You-Know-Wh-"  
  
**"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"  
**  
Everyone turned wide-eyed to stare at Hagrid who had burst into tears.  
  
**"NOT LILY AN JAMES, NOOOOO!"**  
  
"Yes I am sorry to announce that the Potters are indeed dead. Sirius Black, their secret keeper betrayed them, he was apprehended moments ago after killing 13 people including his friend Peter Pettigrew."  
  
By now most of the hall was in tears, Lily and James had only graduated two years ago. Most of the older students had dated either James, Sirius, or Peter.  
  
"But that is not all," McGonagall contused, "as many of you know the Potters have a son Harry. Well it seems that the Dark Lord tried to kill Harry and couldn't, and amazingly the Dark could not kill him. Some how little Harry Potter has managed to defeat the Dark Lord. He is gone."  
  
Her last words vibrated though the hall followed by shocked silence. Then the cheering started, so loud that a muggle who was sitting by his fire ten miles away, jumped at the nose which was so loud it could have come from the house next door. Needless to said he never found out were it came from, even after spending most of the night trying to find the nose to tell the makers to shut the bloody hell up so he could go to sleep.  
  
McGonagall stared at the students in disgust, how could they forget so easily that two wonderful people were now gone?  
  
"Professor McGonagall," a voice said in her ear, and she turned to see Dumbledore looking at her. "A word in my office please, the other teachers are already on their way. Lets leave the students to their fun."  
  
So together they walked out of the hall, and along the endless passage way till they reached the stone gargoyle that lead to the Headmaster's office.  
  
"Mars Bars," Dumbledore said loudly, because the noise from the hall was still loud.  
  
The moment they stepped onto the moving stairs the noise disappeared, his office was spelled so no sound could get in.  
  
Inside his office waited the other teachers, all sitting sadly on chairs or standing around. McGonagall could see little Professor Flitwich sitting on the Headmaster's desk, plowing his noise.  
  
"Thank you all for coming," Dumbledore begin in a soft voice. "We have much to disguise, but first a moment of silence please for those lost tonight."  
  
For a moment the office was silent, except for the sniffles of Hagrid, and some sobbing which McGonagall thought was coming from Professor Sprout.  
  
"Well now I think we can start," Dumbledore said, breaking the silence. "As I said we have much to talk about, but for now the question is, where should young Harry go?"  
  
"Well here of course Albus," McGonagall said.  
  
"Now, now Minerva, Harry has to go to one of his relatives. We must protect him, so that if Voldemort" everyone in the room shuddered at the name, "comes back, he will be safe."  
  
"But Albus," McGonagall said stubbornly, "the only living relatives he has are the Dursleys and we can hardly send him there."  
  
"And why not," asked a voice from the corner, it was Snape, and McGonagall noticed he had a small on his face. _'He must be happy James is finally gone,'_ she thought to herself. "Is prince Potter to good for them?"  
  
"You know what I mean," McGonagall said angrily, "you heard how Lily use to complain about having to stay with her sister."  
  
"Minerva, I agree that the Dursleys will not make Harry the happiest, but they will keep him safe," Dumbledore said sadly, "and if he dose not have any other relatives I will be forced to send him there."  
  
"I would will not allow that," McGonagall whispered, "Lily was like a daughter to me, I will **not** allow you to sent her son to that hell. I will take him."  
  
"Now Minerva," Professor Sprout said, "I agree that's not the best place for him, but you can't just take him."  
  
"Watch me."  
  
"I must warn you then," Dumbledore said solemnly, the twinkles in his eyes no were to be found. "If you take Harry now, we will have to stop you. Your wand will be taken away and you will be seriously fined. I would hate to have to do that to you Minerva, let us take him to the Dursleys."  
  
**"NO!"** McGonagall said, shaking with rage, "you can not be serious."  
  
She looked around the room, but found that everyone was being completely serious. She thought, long and hard about what she would do next. McGonagall loved being a witch; coming from a muggle family it had been her dream as a child. Yet Lily meant the world to her, and she could not live with herself if she let her child be taken to those awful people.  
  
"Well you'll have to find me first."  
  
And with that she appeared away. Never to be seen again. Maybe it was fate or just unusually good luck, but she never was found. Harry Potter disappeared too that night, not to be seen for a long time. Many people think they know what happened to him, even more think they have the right to know were he went for all those years.  
  
But whenever anyone would ask, "where were you all those years?"

He'd look up at the sky and say, "I wish I knew."


	2. The Letter From Hell

**Chapter Two: The Letter From Hell**

Dear Aunt Anne,  
  
I know you haven't heard from me for a while. I need help thought; I don't know who to turn to. You might have heard what happened in the Daily Prophet, what ever they are saying is a lie. I'll tell you the real story.  
  
I'm in hell.  
  
I have no idea why I ever wanted to have children. Alright I didn't give birth to Harry, Lily did, but now that she is gone he's all mine and I don't want him.  
  
I never knew babies could cry that much! Yes, I can deal with 30 rowdy fifteen year olds for an hour, but a baby. It seems the great Minerva McGonagall has meet her match, my students would die of shock.  
  
Yes, you heard right I am taking care of a baby. Well not just any baby, this is the Great Harry Potter. Not that that makes any difference to me, to me he is like the grandson I never had. Lily was like a daughter to me, poor girl, her parents died when she was just nine years old, and then she was forced to live with that sister of hers, Petunia.  
  
When I heard Dumbledore wanted to send Harry there, well, it was just unacceptable. They would never understand him. So I took him.  
  
You are right again, never-broke-a-rule-in-her-life Professor McGonagall took a baby with out permission. Of course they'll have my wand for it, and a lot of money I don't even have, but I couldn't do that to Lily and James.  
  
So I apparated to Godic's Hollow that night, after saying my final words to Albus Dumbledore. My one time mentor and friend, I don't know what he is now. It was a wreck, the house was gone, with only crater lefts to show were it once stood. The hardest part was seeing Lily and James' bodies, which had survived the explosion almost intact. They had been my favorite students, though James was, I'll admit, one of my hardest, but I always knew he had a big heart.  
  
Then I saw him, little Harry, still in his crib, crying. He was a little dusty from the explosion, but other then that he was fine, except for the cut on his forehead in the shape of a lightning bolt. Not many people know that I have a soft spot for babies; it almost broke my heart to see him there.  
  
I got him out of course right before the muggles started coming, with their cameras and microphones like these was a show for their amusement.  
  
I apparated to a homeless shelter near my hometown in Nottingham. I use to have a muggle friend who lived there; it was the best place I could think of.  
  
And that is were I am today, in hell. The baby cries day and night for his mommy and daddy and paddy. I have no muggle money or a place to go, for I know they are looking for me. The people here are nice; they are teaching me about raising a child. I told them he is my grandson. That his parents died leaving me a huge debt, which forced me into bankrupts.  
  
I have no clue were to go, what to do with him. I am thinking Australia, somewhere with good muggle schools. They wouldn't look for me there, I'll find work or something, give him a good life. He wouldn't have to grow up famous either, but I can tell him about magic and his parents. When he is older.  
  
I'll change my name so he can go to Hogwarts when his older, posing as a muggle-born or something. I will figure that out later, when he is eleven, that seems so far away right now.  
  
As I said earlier I need help, I need to throw them off my trail so I can disappear. Could you please tell the ministry or Dumbledore or someone that I am in a different country? Maybe America.  
  
You will probably never hear from me again and I will never know if you helped me out in this time of need. If you do, I am eternally grateful.  
  
Your Niece,

_Minerva McGonagall_  
  
"Thank you Miss. McRyan for informing the ministry of your niece's intentions," the Minster of magic told the old women, smiling.  
  
"Your very welcome dear," the women said in a surgery sweet voice, "anything to help find the young hero. Though I am surprised she asked for my help, we were never very close."  
  
"She must be very desperate then. Well no matter, I'll have someone go to Australia right away. Harry Potter will be safe in his Aunt and Uncle's house by Monday."


	3. Five Years Later

A/N: Wow some people actually got that it was a decoy, I though I was being really subtle, lol. Well I hope you like this chapter.  
  
_Five years later:_  
  
**Five-Year Anniversary Of The Disappearance of Harry Potter**  
  
Five years ago the magical world was amazed to discover that young Harry Potter, now hero of the magical world, had defected You-Know-Who (we refrain from printing He's name due to complaints from readers). That night Harry Potter disappeared from his parent's house and has yet to be found. The ministry of magic asks anyone with information as to his whereabouts to please come forward. They are also searching for a Minerva McGonagall who is know to be the one who took him from his parent's ruined house.  
  
There have been many sightings of them over the five years. First in America, then in Ireland, and just last week in Denmark. It is rumored that Harry Potter is going by the name Henry Portland, and Minerva McGonagall by Sara Portland. Harry's once jet-black hair has been turned many different colors but usual brown, and McGonagall is though to have changed her looks to become younger. If you have seen or heard about either of these people please alert the ministry.

We are still hopeful to bring young Harry Potter to his guardians, Vernon and Petunia Dursley's, house sometime in the future. Until that time we can only hope that he is safe were ever he is.

* * *

"Harry Potter get in this bath right now!" Minerva McGonagall yelled at her five year old charge.  
  
"But Grandma its to cold," the little boy wined at her. McGonagall had to admit he looked so cute when he wined, it was so hard to say no to him. Yet after five years of this she was getting better at it. 'It seems like just yesterday he was a baby' she thought sadly, 'and in only six years he'll be old enough to go to Hogwarts.' But she couldn't think about that now, now she had to make sure he was happy and they didn't get caught.  
  
"If you had gotten in when I told you to it wouldn't be cold," she said making her mouth form a thin line, so he would know she meant it. It was the signal she had invented with her students to show she was angry, but with him she use it as a warning.  
  
"But why do I need a bath? I had one yesterday."  
  
"I told you, Kindergarten starts tomorrow and I want you looking nice." McGonagall had decided years ago that once Harry started school she would have to stick to English speaking countries, so here they were in America. Since she had sent that letter to her Aunt Anne she had moved from country to country, only once going back to England. She know her Aunt wasn't to be trusted knowing she would turn the letter into the ministry, it had bought them some time.  
  
It had been a hard life the first few years, living from paycheck to paycheck, trying to find someone to take care of Harry well she went to night school to get a degree in muggle teaching. Then last year it had happened, she had gotten an American teaching degree, she would be back in the classroom doing what she loved. Now they lived most of the time in the US and sometimes moved to other countries were she taught at the American high schools.  
  
Right now they were in California, near San Francisco, were she had managed to get a small apartment, teaching didn't pay very well. She figured they could stay another month before they had to move on. It was a sham, because she loved California. 'Oh well this is the price I must pay to keep Harry, and I don't know how I'd live without him.'  
  
"But Grandma, why do I have to go to Kindergarten?"  
  
"To get a good education, make friends, and give me some peace. Now Get In The Bath!"  
  
"What's education?"  
  
"Harry!"  
  
"Coming," the little boy jumped into the bath, his hair was jet-black, and he had brilliant emerald green eyes that McGonagall thought made him look like a baby angle.  
  
"Now Harry there's something I wanted to talk to you about. This is very serious so you must pay close attention."  
  
"OK Grandma."  
  
"You remember me explaining why you don't live with your parents and how there are people after us?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"And because of that we are in hiding?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"So we are going to have to change your name and appearance for Kindergarten like we do when we go out in public."  
  
"What's appearance Grandma?"  
  
"What you look like."  
  
"Ohhhhhh."  
  
"So what name would you like to use this time?"  
  
"Darth Vader!" McGonagall shock her head, sometimes she regarded buying those Star Wars movies.  
  
"I already told you, we have to pick a name that wouldn't draw attention.  
  
"But I want Darth Vader," Harry winded.  
  
"How about Derek Vander? That's close."  
  
"OK," he said happily. It sometimes amazed McGonagall how easily it was to amused him. 'Now like the kids back at Hogwarts' she thought sadly.  
  
"And I'll be Jane Vander, can you remember that?"  
  
"Yes, Derek and Jane Vander. Where will you be teaching?"  
  
"In the same school, 4th grade. So if you have any problems you can come and get me, ok?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"And you remember the story I told you?"  
  
"Yes, you're my Grandma who raised me and my parents are dead."  
  
"Great Harry, now we just need to change our looks."  
  
She took the boy out of the bathtub, dried him off with a towel, and looked him over.  
  
"I think red hair and freckles," she said to her self well pulling out her wand.  
  
"Magic, Magic," Harry yelled happily as she preformed the charm him. Harry always loved seeing magic, and she couldn't wait till he was old enough for her to teach him some simple spells.  
  
"Now go get ready for bed," she said shooing him back into his room. "Lights out in five minutes.  
  
"Ok, Grandma, night."  
  
"Goodnight Harry, sleep tight." 


	4. Ottery St Catchpole

_A/N: I'm so glad everyone has liked this story so far. This chapter is a little different. Oh and _**McGonagall doesn't know the Weasleys live in Ottery St. Catchpole**_, in case your wondering. So on with the story. Oh and thanks to everyone who reviewed, your encouragement was what made me continue this story._  
  
**Ottery St. Catchpole**  
  
"Now Derek remember I'm only a few classrooms away, incases you need me."  
  
"Sure thing Grandma, don't worry, I've done this before"  
  
"I know, just be careful. Oh here we are, Miss. Number's class. Are you sure you don't want me to come in?"  
  
"Yes Grandma, see you after school."  
  
The red-haired boy sighed as his Grandma left him in front of the green door of his new classroom. He was now seven years old, and as his Grandma liked to say, way to mature for his age then is normal, yet she still treated him like a baby. Yes it was true that she had every reason to be nervous, for the first time in almost five years they were back in England.  
  
It had been Harry's idea, even though he know it wasn't that safe here. Someone might recognize him or Grandma and then he'd be taken away. Yet ever since his Grandma had told him the amazing story of his birth and his parent's death, he had wanted to come here, to his homeland.  
  
So with a little bagging his Grandma had gotten a job in the little town of Ottery St. Catchpole. Harry had lived all over the world, but usually in big towns or cities like New York or Los Angles, so he was exited about moving to a small place. It was so small in fact that the local primer school, as Grandma called it, had to combine grades. Miss Number taught, what in America would be, 2ed and 3ed grade.  
  
Harry ran over the story he would use in his mind. It was the one he had used at his first school back in San Francisco. His name would be Derek Vender, a red-haired and freckle boy whose parents were from Ireland but had moved to England after their marriage. They had died in a horrible car crash and left him in the care of his Grandma Jane Vender.  
  
Checking to make sure his looked all right, he pushed open the door, not knowing what to expect.  
  
The teacher, a pretty woman who looked in her twenties, was at the board writing out some math problems, when Harry entered. She didn't see Harry, but the rest of the class did, there must have been about twenty boys and girls, split into two groups. 'Probable for the different grades,' Harry thought to himself. They were all staring at him, Harry didn't mind, he was use to it, always being the new kid.  
  
"Excuse me," Harry said in a loud voice, trying to get the teacher's attention. It worked, she turned around to look at him. It seemed one had told her there would be a new student, because she looked at Harry blankly.  
  
"Can I help you?" She asked in a sweet voice, Harry immediately liked her, he had had at least twenty teachers since he started school, because they moved around a lot, and this one seemed like she generally wanted to help him.  
  
"I'm the new student, Derek Vender," he said, knowing she wouldn't have known.  
  
"Oh, I didn't know there would be a new student this year. Someone must have forgot to tell me, anyway come in Derek."  
  
Harry entered the classroom, knowing what was coming next, the introduction.  
  
"Well why don't you tell use a little about yourself, like what grade your in, or where you come from," she asked, smiling at him. Harry sighed, 'why did all teachers insist on doing this, he'd be gone in a month or less, why bother.'  
  
"Well I'm in third grade and I came from Moscow, but before that I was in New York. My Grandma is a subset fifth grade teacher so we move around a lot." Harry said, looking at the teacher, knowing what was coming next.  
  
"Wow, that is impressive, how many other schools have you been to Derek?"  
  
"I don't really know, about twenty or thirty in all different places."  
  
"Well I'm sure you can enrich our Geography discussions. Now do I have a volunteer to show Derek around?"  
  
'That's a new one,' Harry thought sarcastically, 'now no one will volunteer and she'll pick some one.'  
  
Harry loved his Grandma, but he hated moving so offend and always hiding. He never got to make any real friend that was probably why he was so mature for his age.  
  
"No volunteers, how about you Ronald?" The teacher asked a red-haired boy sitting in the middle of the class.  
  
"Derek why don't you go take the free set next to him, Ronald raise your hand so Derek knows were to go."  
  
Harry went and sat down next to the kid, smiling at him, the other kid smiled nervously back. 'They must not get many new kids,' Harry thought.  
  
Just then a bell rang.  
  
"Oh recess time already, well go out and have fun," Miss. Number said.  
  
Harry set his backpack down, ready to follow the other kids.  
  
"Hey, Derek," Ronald said, and Harry turned, "you have to take your lunch, we eat during recess."  
  
"That's weird, in all the other schools I've been to you eat after recess in a cafeteria."  
  
"What's a cafeteria?" Ronald said.  
  
"Its this place with tables that kids go to eat lunch."  
  
"Oh," Ronald said stupidly, "we don't have those. Do you want to eat with me and my family?"  
  
"Um, sure," Harry said, surprised, most of his guides left him as soon as possible. "Thanks Ronald."  
  
"Call me Ron, I've been trying to get Miss. Number to call me Ron all year but she wouldn't."  
  
By then they had reached the playground, compared to some of the other schools Harry had been to, it was small. On one side were about ten picnic tables were the other kids had gone to eat there lunch.  
  
"We eat with the fifth graders, that's the grade my brothers are in, my sister is in our class."  
  
"How many siblings do you have?"  
  
"Six, there's seven of us counting me, but my three older brothers go to boarding school in Scotland."  
  
"Your lucky, I've always wanted a brother or sister."  
  
"Why would you want that? Its terrible I never get anything new and no privacy. I even have to eat with them because mum packs a lunch we split."  
  
"Well at least you have someone your age around, there's only my Grandma at home, and since we move a lot I never make any friends."  
  
"Where are your parents?"  
  
"Dead."  
  
"Oh sorry, "  
  
"Don't be, I still have Grandma," Harry said, he didn't want this kid feeling sorry for him.  
  
"Well there they are," Ron said, changing the subject, he was pointing to a table filled with redheads.  
  
"Hey Ronald," one of the older boys said, he looked exactly like the other older boy, and Harry decided they were twins. "Brought us another Weasley?"  
  
Harry looked confused until Ron explained.  
  
"It's a joke, everyone knows all Weasleys have red hair and freckles, like you."  
  
"Oh," Harry said feeling stupid.  
  
"Everyone this is Derek Vender, he's new."  
  
"Hey," the other twin said, "that's the name of our new sub."  
  
"That's my Grandma," Harry said quickly, 'so they're in fifth grade.'  
  
"Cool," the other said, "we can hold your ransom if we get a bad grade. I'm Fred by the way."  
  
"George, but you can call me Fred, everyone dose."  
  
"Or we go by Gred and Ford."  
  
"Ignore them," the only girl at the table said, "no one can tell them apart so they like to play with our minds. I'm Ginevra, but you can call me Ginny."  
  
"Its nice to meet you," Harry said smiling, he was beginning to like it here.  
  
"We were just talking about what prank we would play on Miss. Vender, you wouldn't tell her will you," Fred or George said.  
  
"I wouldn't do that," Harry said, "Grandma has eyes in the back of her head, nothing gets passed her."  
  
"Well she hasn't meet Fred and George Weasley yet now has she?" One of the twins said smiling evilly.


	5. Turning Rocks into Lunchboxes

_A/N: I want to thank everyone for reviewing, again. It really means a lot to me that you like my story. I hate this title so if anyone has any suggestions please tell me._

* * *

**Turning Rocks into Lunchboxes  
**  
"Harry James Potter pack your bags right now!"  
  
"But Grandma-"  
  
"No buts Harry, we have to leave, its too dangers here."  
  
"So there is a family of wizards, who cares, its not like they'll recognize us. And even if they do find out we're not muggles, we can tell them some lie."  
  
"Oh it's fine in theory, but what if they invite someone to stay with them, like Dumbledore, and he sees us?"  
  
"We'll just have to be careful. Grandma please, I'd really like to get to know a magical family and maybe have some friends for awhile."  
  
"Oh Harry your imposable, how am I suppose to say no to you."  
  
"So we can stay?"  
  
"For a little longer, now that I think about it, it would be suspense if we moved away only a day after we arrived."  
  
Harry smiled, maybe he'd final have a chance to make friends with people like himself.  
  
"Well now that that's decided there is no use dwelling on it. Get your books out and lets begin."  
  
For the last two years McGonagall had been teaching Harry magic. Not anything big, just simple spells that would be useful if they were attacked by the Death Eaters that had not been caught, or cornered by the ministry. Oh courses Harry had to learn the theory first, so McGonagall had got most of the first and second year course books by owl post.  
  
Harry was no genius by he did do well; they were already some spells in second year and of course in transfiguration they we well into second year.  
  
"What are we learning today, Grandma?" Harry asked, he loved the practical lesions but hated the theory, why did he have to know why something worked the way it did.  
  
"Well I thought I'd teach you how to turn a rock into a lunch box today."  
  
"Why do I need to know that?" Harry asked, some of McGonagall's lesions were 'different' but this one was just strange.  
  
"In case you ever forget one when we move of course, so I wouldn't have to keep doing it for you. Every single time its 'Grandma I lost my Star Wars lunch box could you make me a new one?'"  
  
"Oh, err sorry."  
  
"It's OK dear, but that's why you're going to learn how to do it. Take out your wand."  
  
Finding a wand for Harry had been a problem, oversell they couldn't walk into Diagon Alley and buy one. Mr. Ollvander, McGonagall told Harry, remembered every wand he ever sold, so if they walked in he'd remember McGonagall. She also thought he might not turn them in, you can never tell with him, but it was way to risky. Finally they had found a magical shopping center, much like Diagon Alley in New York, you just had to go through this café window in Brooklyn.  
  
That place had a wand shop and they just told him that McGonagall was buying school supplies really early because they were moving to Africa and didn't know if they'd be back anytime before school starts. The clerk had looked at them strangely but sold them Harry's wand, Willow, 9 inches with one Dragon heartstring. McGonagall then promised they'd get a new wand from Diagon Alley before going to Hogwarts. "You can not go to a British school with a Yankee wand," were her exact words.  
  
"And say Lunco, remember to visualize the rock turning into a lunch box."  
  
"OK Grandma, one, two, three, Lunco," the rock Harry had been practicing on turned a little square, then in split down the center and formed a handle.  
  
"That was good for a first try Harry, but try to work on it being plastic instead of rock and another color." McGonagall said, laughing a little, in all her years teaching at Hogwarts, she had never taught this spell. She had actually only learned it recently, because of all the times she was forced to buy a new lunchbox, she had looked it up in a box she got vie owl. "How to Turn Rocks Into Things Your Kids Lost," by _Susan Hooken_, McGonagall remembered she had been one of her best students.  
  
"They really should teach this spell at Hogwarts," McGonagall said lost in thought, not knowing she had just said that out loud, "its dam useful, not like the rubbish they teach. Turning matches into needles, who needs that in real life?"  
  
"Then maybe I shouldn't go," Harry said looking up from the rocks he was still trying to turn into plastic, "maybe I should just stay her with you."  
  
"Nonsense Harry," McGonagall said seriously, "even if they do teach some rubbish there, there are plenty of useful things. Also it's a time in your life were you get to make friends and have fun. Some of my happiest memories come from my years as a student at Hogwarts, I wouldn't dream of taking that away from you."  
  
"But Grandma, I don't want to lose you. Its not like I can come home to you during holidays. That headmaster-"  
  
"Dumbledore, Harry, use his name"  
  
"Right, Dumbledore will want to send me to those relatives I have and I'll never see you again."  
  
"Oh you'll see me again Harry, maybe not during your years at Hogwarts but sometime. Come on, that's enough for tonight, lets go to bed."  
  
"Ok Grandma, if you say so," and McGonagall knew he wasn't talking about her telling him to go to bed.  
  
"Night Harry."  
  
"Night Grandma, I love you."  
  
"I love you to Harry and never forget that, that there is someone out there that loves you."  
  
"Um OK Grandma, whatever you say." 


	6. Dinner at the Weasleys

**Dinner at the Weasleys**

"Hey, do you want to come over for dinner sometime?" Ron asked his new best friend Derek Vender. It had been a week since Derek moved in and somehow they had just clicked. Though there was something weird about him, like he was hiding something from Ron – something big.

"Um, I don't know. I have to ask Grandma. She's a little protective, so I might not be able to go," Derek said sadly. 'There it is again,' Ron thought, 'what is wrong with one dinner? How could his Grandma be nervous about that?'

"Oh, come on, what'll she have against dinner?"

"Oh well, she's just worried I'll-um-get hurt or something, since we move a lot. I'll be gone in a month or so, so she doesn't like me getting attached." Derek said.

Ron nodded. That was another thing about Derek he didn't get: why he had to move so much.

"Hey, look; there's Grandma, I'll go ask her," Derek said pointing at a figure that had just come outside. Then he leapt up to go and talk to her.

"How'd you get mum to agree to that?" Fred asked, he was sitting next to Ron eating a tuna sandwich.

"Well dad actually suggested it, when I told him about Derek," Ron said, "You know him, obsessed with anything to do with muggles."

"He was so excited when he heard we a muggle friend," Ginny added. The Weasleys we thought to be a little strange by the other kids, who stayed clear of them.

"What about mum?" George asked.

"Oh well, for once she agreed with dad that it was a good idea. 'The kids never have any friends over, it'll be good for them' were her exact words," Ginny said. "Then her pot started singing and she went looking for you two muttering something about 'the twins stealing her wand again.'"

The four of them started laughing and George said, "Well, it was dad's, actually. I don't think she heard that above all the yelling, though."

"So they're going to get all the you-know-what kind of stuff out of the house?" George asked.

"Yamumwulldoobt." Ron said with his mouth full.

"That's gross, Ron," Ginny said.

"Ickle Ronkins needs to learn how to talk with his mouth closed," Fred said.

"Shut up," Ron said, his face turning as red as his hair, "hey, look; Derek is coming back."

"So?" The twins asked at the same time.

"She said yes," Harry said smiling.

The Weasleys all started cheering, making the other kids turn to stare at them.

_A few minutes earlier:_

"Please, pleases, please, please, ple-"

"Oh, all right."

"Thanks so much, Grandma; you don't know how much this means to me. I'll be really careful, don't worry."

"For some reason that's not very reassuring." McGonagall said frowning; this was not a good idea.

_That night at the Weasleys: _

"I'm so glad you could come, Derek," Molly Weasley told Harry as soon as he stepped thought the door. Then she gave him a big hug. As Harry had never been hugged by anyone except his Grandma, this came as a big surprise. "The kids never have any friends over, and I'm just so glad you're making a good impression on them."

"It's my pleasure, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said, while trying to breathe.

Fred, sensing Harry's trouble, said, "Mum, if you don't let him breathe, we won't have any friends anymore."

"Oh, sorry, Derek dear. Oh Ron, why don't you show Derek your ro- sorry I mean to the round room, yes the round room dear." She paused. It looked to Harry like she had caught herself before saying something wrong, but what was wrong in Ron showing Harry his room? And why did they have a round room? It seemed like everyone else was surprised by that name too.

"The round room, mum?" Ron asked, bewildered. Harry was sure there was something in Ron's room Mrs. Weasley didn't want him to see, and he was sure it had to do with magic. Grandma had told him before he left that it was OK to tell the Weasleys that he knew about magic, so long as he didn't say he was a wizard. Yet it would be fun seeing the Weasleys try to keep the magic in their house from him.

"Yes, the round room dear, the new one, you know, because the old shape was a little strange." Mrs. Weasley said meaningfully.

"Oh, you mean that round room mum; I thought you said-" George started.

"George, why don't you help me with the dishes? Go on and play, you four."

Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Fred left the hall and went into a living room, which although it looked more like a rectangle to Harry, must have been what Mrs. Weasley have meant.

"Well this is the round room, Derek, though I like to call it the rectangle room," Fred said smiling.

"Anyway, do you want to play chess?" Ron asked. Right before Harry was about to answer, Ginny elbowed Ron in the ribs.

"Ron don't you remember, our chess set is a little different."

"Oh, right, sorry mate, guess we can't play."

Harry, who knew what exactly was 'off' about their chess set, was trying not to laugh.

"Well, I always like to play games with different rules; we can play anyway." The Weasleys looked horrified.

"Well you see," Ron started, but Fred interrupted.

"What ickle Ron here is trying to say, is that the set is missing some pieces."

"Oh yes, that was it," Ron said and Harry noticed that Ron was a very bad actor, though Fred and Ginny weren't doing too badly.

Just then Mrs. Weasley called, "Dinner's ready," and the Weasleys all sighed in relief. "We're eating outside today,' Mrs. Weasley said as they entered the kitchen, "could you boys please grab some cutlery on your way out."

The boys and Ginny went out into the garden. It was a great place, Harry had to admit. Nothing like the gardens he and his Grandma had had, this one was overgrown with lots of strange plants which Harry knew were magical.

"So what do-" Fred started, but was interrupted by a loud noise that sounded like a car backfiring and a man with flaming red hair appeared right by him.

"Evening Fred, when is your new friend coming?" He said in a friendly voice. All the Weasleys, including Mrs. Weasley who had come out when she heard the noise, turned to stare at Harry.

"I knew you were wizards," Harry said in fake surprise.

"Derek, we're not-" Ron started, then paused, "wait; how'd you know?"

"RON!" Mrs. Weasley said. "Don't tell him."

"It's OK, Mrs. Weasley. I already knew about magic," Harry said.

"How?" Ginny asked.

"Err… my sister is – was – a muggleborn. She was killed by that lord person, Vold- something."

The Weasleys all sighed in relief and Harry spent a wonderful evening with them. That was, until Dumbledore showed up.

Right in the middle of pudding, there was a loud bang next to Ginny and everyone turned. Standing there was an old wizard in purple robes, with a very long beard.

"Ah, Professor Dumbledore, how nice to see you," Mrs. Weasley said, a little surprised.

"Molly, you remember I put wards on your house after the Pettigrew incident?" Dumbledore said, getting right to the point.

"Yes; has something happened?" Mr. Weasley asked nervously.

"Nothing bad," Dumbledore said, making everyone sigh in relief. "The wards tell me the true identity of anyone that enters your house. Wel,l tonight it seems as though you have an unexpected visitor."

"Well, yes; Derek Vender here, he's a friend of Ron's from school-" Mr. Weasley said, indicating Harry, who, knowing what was happening, groaned. How was he going to get out of this one?"

"Arthur, that boy isn't Derek Vender. He is Harry Potter," Dumbledore said gravely.

Sirius, because Harry had been kidnapped, broke out of Azkaban after only a year. He went after Peter, no one knows how he knew Peter was at the Weasleys, but he caught him nevertheless. He is now free and Peter in Azkaban. Because of this, Dumbledore made the Weasleys put wards around their house, so he'd know if another Death Eater was hiding there.


	7. On the Road Again

**A/N: Hi Everyone, I know I left you with a huge cliffhanger last time. I'm sorry, couldn't help myself, I've never done a cliffhanger before. So thanks to everyone who reviewed. I don't know when I'll get the next chapter up, hopefully soon. Do now on with the story.**

**  
On The Road Again**  
  
"Bloody Hell!" Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Professor, are you sure?" Mrs. Weasley asked, look at Harry, who had frozen in fear.   
  
_I knew something like this would happed_, Harry thought sadly, _it always does_.  
  
"_Reviler_," Dumbledore said pointing his wand at Harry. It felt as though someone hade dropped a bucket of ice on his head. The gasps of surprise told Harry that his red hair and freckles had disappeared, living his mop of jet-black hair and lightning bolt scar.  
  
"Blood Hell, its Harry Potter!" Ron gasped in surprise.  
  
_He really needs come up with a better line_, Harry thought.  
  
For the first time in his life, Harry was glad Grandma had insisted on teaching him to Apparate. Okay, she had only started a month ago, and he had been splinched once, that was not fun, but it was his only choice.  
  
"You know,' Harry said, breaking the silence, "this has been fun, but I really should be going. Don't want to be sent to the Dursleys you know." And with that his Apparated home.  
  
His Grandma was in the kitchen eating dinner when he Apparated in the hall. She jumped at the sudden noise, and then frowned.  
  
Harry was only supposed to Apparate on emergences.  
  
"Harry, what's wrong?" she asked, putting down her fork.   
  
Harry quickly explained the situation. McGonagall only frowned and told him to go pack. She then called the school, to tell them to get another sub because her sister was ill and she had to leave at once.  
  
She then called the person who found her teaching jobs to tell her to get another one quickly.  
  
"So soon?" Mrs. Bumble, the woman, asked. McGonagall had found her though a teacher's organization found for teachers running away from something, well anything besides the law. They tended not to ask any questions and that was how McGonagall liked it.  
  
"Yes Sally, my grandson, Harry, you remember him. He ran into some old friends of mine and it got ugly, so I thought it best to leave quickly." McGonagall said, Sally knew bits and pieces of McGonagall's past, like their real names, and that she was trying to keep Harry from his Aunt and Uncle. She didn't know about the magic side though.  
  
"I'm sorry to hear that Minerva, well how dose Maryland sound to you?"  
  
"Perfect," McGonagall said smiling.  
  
When Harry came downstairs five minutes later with his suitcase McGonagall was sitting at the table finishing her supper.  
  
"Done?" She asked, turning to look at him. They tried not to own much stuff, so that when they were forced to leave quickly there wouldn't be much to carry. The organization arranged for already furnished places, along with a car if needed.  
  
"Yes, how about you?"  
  
"I was done two minutes ago," McGonagall said in mock bragging.  
  
"You cheated," Harry, said hotly, "you used magic."  
  
They usually had a competition to see who could pack the fastest, and magic of all kinds was off limits.  
  
"Well we're in a hurry, how dose Maryland sound?"   
  
"Find I guess, that's near DC?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes, I though it was best to go back to the states for a while, also that's the only opening Sally had on short notice. Don't worry, it's just for about month, I'm teaching third grade this time, maybe I'll have you."  
  
"NO!!!!!!" Harry said.   
  
"Well, we'll talk about it later; we have to go, before they can track us down. Now that I know you can apparate properly, appear into the men's bathroom at the airport. Can you do that?"   
  
Harry though for a moment, picturing the airport bathroom he had used so often on layovers. He nodded.  
  
"Good, use the last one, its out of order, I'll meet you out side in two minutes, Okay?"  
  
Harry nodded again and Apparated away.


	8. A New School

_A/N: Sorry this took me so long to finish; I've been really busy lately. I want to thank everyone who reviewed and stuck with this story. So I hope you like it, happy reading._

* * *

A New School

It had been a two days since Harry and McGonagall had been forced to flee England for America. Harry was use to this, but for some reason he couldn't stop thinking about what had happened. Harry had never had a best friend, because they constantly had to move. When they went back to the US he was usually far ahead of his peers because European schools are much harder. When he was in Europe he was the 'American' and different. He just never seemed to fit in, till they had gone to England. There his accent wasn't different, there he was on the same level as everyone else, and there he had made a best friend.

'Ron probably hates me now,' Harry thought miserably. Today he would have to start school again; McGonagall had fixed it so their town house was near a good school. Yet he was still way ahead of everyone else, in the short amount of time he was in England and with some tutoring from his Grandma, he could now enter the fifth grade. That would mean everyone was two years older then him.

"Harry, get down here," McGonagall yelled, snapping Harry out of his thoughts. He gripped his book bag and ran down the stairs and into the little kitchen. McGonagall had made pancakes and as Harry started eating his, she started her lecture.

"Now Harry, after that disaster last time we have to be extra careful. That means no going over to other people's houses and if I find out anyone magical lives here, we're moving right away. Is that clear?"

"Yes Grandma," Harry muttered, he knew his Grandma was only trying to keep him safe, but he could take care of himself.

"Now, for your looks, you're going to have to look completely different. I've decided to make you taller, and give you blond hair and blue eyes. As for a names yours will be, Henry Porter and I'm Jill Porter."

She didn't even wait for him to nod his head, but preformed the spell. She had also chosen to be blond haired and blue eyed, though she was the same height. As always her hair was pulled back in a bun, and she wore a black dress, very much like the robes she was use to. Harry grinned, no matter what his Grandma looked like, she always had the feel of someone you don't want to mess with.

"Are we going by the same, my parents died in a car crash and you're my grandma, story?"

"Of course, now get ready."

Harry grabbed his new lunch box of the table; he had had to transfigure another Star Wars lunch boxes, because he forgot his at home again. He took the Star Wars backpack, Grandma handed him, and together they walked out the door and got into the car. Jones Lane Elementary School was only a mile away, it was a big green building, much bigger then most elementary schools Harry had been to. It was almost five times as big as the primary school in Ottery St. Catchpole, and there were four fifth grade classes.

McGonagall was going to sub for a third grade teacher who had gotten pregnant, Harry was glad he could skip the grade, so there was no chance of him getting his Grandma. They had gotten there a half hour early, so McGonagall could meet the other teachers and get to know her classroom. She had spent the last two days going over the files of the kids in her class, and was looking forward to meeting them.

Harry was in Miss. White's class, the secretary gave them directions to her classroom, and McGonagall. She told them Miss. White wouldn't be in for another fifteen minutes, so Harry and McGonagall decided to go to McGonagall's class first.

"Well this is big," McGonagall said, once she saw the room.

"Ye," Harry agreed, the room was one of the largest classrooms he had ever seen. There were at least forty desks in the room, and still there was room to move around. One wall was filled with cubs for the kid's backpacks. Another had a bookshelf, and a world map. The classroom was already decorated by the old teacher, as most of the classrooms McGonagall taught at were. Harry knew that his Grandma would add her own artwork and decorations that afternoon, and somehow he would be pulled into helping.

For the next couple of minutes Harry explored the classroom, well McGonagall arranged her desk (the other teacher had cleared it for her). Then McGonagall walked Harry down to his classroom. All ready some of the other students had started to arrive.

"Well here it is," McGonagall said stopping in front of a door with 'Miss. White' written on it. Harry could see two boys had already arrived, and an old lady, presumable the teacher, was sitting at a desk in the front. "Do you want me to come in?"

"No, Grandma," Harry said, rolling his eyes, "we go over this ever time, I can handle this myself."

"You know your way to mature for your age," McGonagall said, laughing. "Do you have the note?"

"Yes, I'll see you after school, in your classroom, bye."

"OK, I'll leaving, have a good day."

She was still laughing, as she left. Harry sighed, she did this every time. Well he wasn't really nervous, just a little worried what the other kids would think of him. '_Well it wouldn't solve anything by standing it,_' Harry though, and squaring his shoulders he walked through the door.

"May I help you?" The teacher asked when she noticed Harry.

"Err, yes, I'm the new student Henry Porter."

"Oh, yes," the teacher said, comprehension dawning on her face, Harry sighed inwardly, he was glad he didn't have to explain everything to her. "I was told there would be a new student, but, how old are you Henry?"

Harry groaned, no one had warned her that he was two years ahead.

"Eight, ma'm, I'm two years ahead. I just transferred from England and they're a little ahead."

"Right, well your in luck there is a girl your age in this class. Emily Goldman, she's ahead too. Here I'll put you in the desk next to her."

Harry smiled; at least there was someone his age here. She must be really smart to have skipped two grades with out living in Europe.

By now most of the class had come in, they were all staring at Harry oddly. Harry didn't mind, he was use to this. Miss. White guided him over to a desk, next to a very pretty girl who he guessed was Emily. She was dressed in a plan purple shirt and jeans, her hair seemed to be reddish brown, and she had lots of freckles all over her face. She was reading a very big and hard looking book, so Miss. White had to clear her trough to get her attention. Emily looked up and smiled.

"Hello, Miss. White, can I help you?" She asked, then spotted Harry, she smiled at him. Harry's face turned red, though he couldn't understand why, it wasn't hot in here.

"Emily, this is Henry, he's a new student from England. He's your age, so I thought you two would like to set together. Oh, the bell's about to ring, I'll let you two get acquainted."

With that she turned and walked back to her desk, leaving a still red faced Harry behind.

"Hi," Emily said, "I'm Emily."

"I'm Ha-enry, Henry Porter."

"Bond, James Bond," Emily said laughing.

"What?" Harry asked, 'is she making fun of me, great I already look like a dork,' Harry though.

"You don't know James Bond?" Emily asked.

"No, should I," Harry asked looking confused.

"Well I guess not, I'm not really a big fan, but my brother is. It's a movie, really famous, don't you have movies in England?"

"Err, yes, but I wasn't there that long, I live with my grandma and she moves a lot."

"Oh," Emily said, there was an awkward silence then Harry asked.

"So, what is this class learning about?"

They spent the time till the bell rang talking about schoolwork. Harry didn't know why but he always seemed to go red whenever Emily smiled at him. He really liked that smile, and her. When he told his Grandma that after school had ended for the day, she started laughing.

"I think I'll let you figure this one out yourself, Harry," was all McGonagall would say on the subject. Harry wondered what was so funny about him humiliating himself in front of a really pretty, sweet, intelligent, funny, and interesting girl, but he didn't ask. He knew Grandma would just start laughing again.

And for some reason when ever he didn't want to go back to England anymore.


	9. And Life Goes On

**And Life Goes On…**

Over the next couple of weeks Harry found himself making excuses to spend time with Emily. Granted, this meant he had to spend most of his free time in the school library, because of his Grandma's new rule on not going over to other kids' houses, but somehow he didn't mind. Just because Harry had skipped two grades didn't mean he was a genius and he found he had to work very hard to keep up with Emily.

Emily was trying to get to high school by the age of ten. 'If I'm still here by then, I'll go with her,' Harry found himself thinking whenever she said that.

He found that whenever he wasn't with Emily, he would be thinking about her. How she had a dimple on one cheek, which only showed if she smiled. How she was always quoting from the movies her brothers watched, though she kept saying she didn't like them. Emily had three brothers, Bill, Will, and Dill. Her mother had died well giving birth to Dill, when she was five. Her father worked two jobs to make ends meet, so the only way Emily got to do anything was by working hard.

Harry sometimes had a feeling Emily was keeping something from him. Or maybe it was just he thought anyone who spent all her free time at the library must have an alternate motive, but he didn't ask. He couldn't lose her.

They spent all their free time together, talking or studying. Emily took him to see the highlights of the suburbs, as she called them, which included the movie theater (where the teens hang out), the local McDonalds, the public library, and, of course, the bookstore. Harry, in turn, told her about all the places he had lived. About what the subways in Moscow looked like, the story of the time he got lost in Australia and found a family of sugar gliders. He taught her how to make a rude gesture in Turk, how you say hello in New Zealand, and all the ghost stories he know of people who died walking across the Golden Gate Bridge.

They spent many afternoons sitting in a dark corner of the library, picturing places they'd like to go together. Emily wanted to swim in the Dead Sea, experience the wonders of the Ancient World, got windsurfing in Australia, and climb Mount Everest. Harry, on the other hand, wanted to know what it was like to live in a small community where everyone knew each other; to have a place where he belonged, and didn't stand out for his accent.

"But you must have had that in one of the places you've been?" Emily said, one day when Harry had expressed this desire for the hundredth time.

"Yes," Harry said, wistfully, "I had that once, for a short time, but not anymore."

"Where?" Emily asked eagerly.

"England, in a little town called Ottery St. Catchpole. Do you know, that's the only time I didn't sound different, were I was immediately accepted?"

"What happened?"

"Some one Grandma knew found out about us. So we had to leave. My best friend, a kid named Ron, he knew who I really was, I think he hates me now."

"I don't get it, did your Grandmother do something wrong?"

"Well yes, I think, she took me. I told you my parents were killed in a car accident. Well that's not really true, they were murdered."

"Oh, Henry, I'm so sorry, I didn't know."

"It's OK; it happened when I was only one. Well, this person, he was like my parents' mentor, he wanted to send me to my Aunt and Uncle, to keep me safe."

"What's wrong with that?"

"They're horrible people, Grandma says. She used to be my mom and dad's teacher, she remembers my mom coming back to school and telling horrible stories about her sister. She couldn't stand to see me sent there, so she took me. If Dumbledore or anyone found out were I am, I'd have to go live with them."

"So she's not your Grandmother?"

"No, sorry about that too, it's the story we always use."

"I told you, don't worry about it, I understand, I'd have done the same thing."

'That's not the worst part," Harry continued, swallowing hard, "the guy that killed my parents, he's killed hundreds of other people. But he couldn't kill me. I don't know why; I can't really remember it that well, his weapon must have backfired or something. Anyway, he's after me now, people think he's dead, but I know he's not. He'll come for me one of these days."

"Henry that's horrible, a-aren't you scared of him?"

"Not really, I don't know why. I'm just used to it. There are much more important things to worry about, things that I can actually do something about. Like making sure we don't run into any wi- I mean people who might know me. Plus, when I'm eleven, I'm going to go to my parents' old boarding school. They'll prepare me for when he comes for me. I hope."

"Henry, I should tell you something-"

"Can it wait? I've got to go, and – oh great, I'm late. Grandma is going to kill me, see you tomorrow."

Harry picked up his backpack and left, not noticing the look of horror and guilt on Emily's face.

Harry never did learn what Emily had wanted to tell him. For a while it seemed both of them had forgotten about that conversation in the library that day. Days turned into weeks and weeks into months, and soon it was the 31st of October; Halloween.

Emily and Harry had agreed to go trick or treating near Harry's house, as it was a bigger area. They had decided to dress as Star Wars characters, mostly on Harry's insistence. He was to be Luke Skywalker and Emily was Princess Leia. They even had those plastic light sabers.

"I can't believe you talked me into this," Emily said the moment Harry opened the door.

"Ah, come on Em, you look great," Harry said. "Let's go, I want to get a sugar high tonight."

"Don't eat it all at once, save some for later and say thank you," McGonagall called after them, sighing.

By the end of the night both Harry and Emily had their pillows bags full of candy and were both on a sugar high. They laughed hysterically the whole ride back to Emily's house. Harry barely took in that this was the first time he had ever seen Emily's house. Although the reason for this was apparent as they pulled into the parking lot in front of her apartment.

Harry stared at it. The apartment building was old and the apartments looked like they could only fit two rooms. Emily saw Harry staring at her home and stopped laughing. She looked away, embarrassed, then opened the door and ran away.

"EM!" Harry called after her, but he didn't think she heard him.

The next day in school, Emily pretended nothing had happened the night before. Harry took his cue from her and for a while it became something they didn't talk about.

It was soon forgotten anyway, as one day in the middle of November, Miss. White approached their desks during free reading time.

"Harry, Emily, can I talk to you for a moment please? Outside."

The duo nodded, looking questioningly at each other. Once they were safely outside, with the door firmly closed, Miss. White told them her news.

"The teachers had a conference about you," she started, "we invited the principle from Highview Middle School too. We all decided that you two are ready for middle school, you're far too advanced for fifth grade; actually you're more like seventh grade students."

Emily let out a little squeak, "I can't believe this, does that mean ?"

"Well, not exactly, you have to pass a test first. It's the entry exam for middle school; if you get good scores we'll put you directly in seventh grade. Every fifth grader takes them at the end of November to make sure they're ready for middle school."

"Um…Miss White," Emily said nervously, "I know that seventh grade is really, really advanced, but what do we have to do to go straight to eighth grade?"

Harry looked at her in shock; he didn't think he was ready for seventh grade, let alone eighth. Plus, they could move at anytime, and then he'd be all alone in eighth grade. But he didn't want to lose Emily.

"My, you're ambitious," Miss. White was saying. "Well, we actually did discuss it, but you have to get almost a hundred percent on the exam to get that far ahead. That, I should warn you, is almost impossible."

"Well, we can try anyway. So, what's on this test?" Harry asked, shooting Emily a look that said 'don't push your luck.'

"I'm going to pass out a guide today, but if you want I can get you copies of last year's test or some other year if you want."

"How many of them do you have?" Emily asked, and Harry knew he'd be spending the rest of the month in the library.

"Oh, about ten, do you want them all?" Miss. White said, surprised.

"Yes," they said together, laughing.

"Oh, and answer sheets too, please," Emily added.

AU: On that fateful Halloween night, the day the magical world was changed forever, someone heard about it before Dumbledore. Someone who will risk everything to save little Harry from life at the Dursleys. What would Harry be like if he grew up loved? Read and find out.


	10. Winter Break and the Tests

Winter Break and Tests

As Harry had predicted, they spent the month leading up to the test in the library, trying to learn everything covered in the practice tests. The only good thing about this was that the test was scheduled for the day before the holidays so they wouldn't have to study during the break. Though Harry knew Emily would want to study a bit before entering 8th grade. For no matter how much Harry protested, Emily made it clear she was going to 8th grade, with or without him. So sighing, Harry took to his books.

"What is the square root of 456?" Emily asked five days before the test.

"What? That wouldn't be on it," Harry protested. Emily was starting to crack under the pressure.

"It might. What is the capital of Russia?"

"Moscow. What was the name of the 13th president?"

"I don't know. Oh God, what am I going to do if that comes up?"

"Don't worry," Harry said, "you'll do fine. Here, look it up."

"Now we have to learn how to diagram sentences," Emily said, "I can't believe I forgot to learn about them. We only have a week left!"

"Calm down. Hey, did I tell you, my Grandma is going to take a job up at the middle school as an English teacher," Harry said. McGonagall had told him the night before at dinner. She was so proud of Harry for skipping so many grades, but she had also been worried that maybe middle school might not be a very safe place for him. So she had asked around for a subbing job and found one.

"No, you didn't. This is great, now we can have her help us cram. What grade is she going to teach?"

"8th" Harry replied. It would be the first time McGonagall taught his grade. He might get her!

A week later Harry thought Emily was having a nervous break down. In five minutes the test would start. Their lives would change forever depending on how they did. Harry was nervous, but he knew if he didn't pass it wouldn't be the end of the world, as Emily seemed to think.

"Please take out a number 2 pencil," Miss. White was saying, "I will pass out the test now."

"Oh, no; it's starting. I'm going to fail. What do I do?" Emily moaned.

"Don't worry," Harry, said, "look; do what I do when I'm nervous, think of something you really want to do, like climb Mount Everest. Don't worry about the test, worry about falling or something. You'll be fine."

Emily gave him a strange look and started chewing her lip. Well, it works for me, Harry thought. He turned his mind to the time McGonagall had let him ride an old broomstick she had for emergencies. It had just felt right, like he was born to be soaring amongst the clouds.

"Open your tests and begin," the teacher said.

Two hours later it was over. Harry thought he had done really well; he knew everything on it, thanks to Emily.

The two were about to leave when Miss. White called out to them.

"Harry, Emily, can you wait a moment, I want to ask you something."

So they stayed near their desk comparing notes on the test. Once all the other students had left, Miss. White closed the door and turned towards them.

"Well, we all know you two wouldn't get any sleep till you find out the results, so I'm going to grade them right now."

Emily and Harry's faces lit up. This was great; they wouldn't have to wait till the end of break to know.

After about twenty minutes she was done. They had both got 98, which Miss. White told them was a new record. They would be starting the 8th grade at the end of break. Harry and Emily said goodbye to their teacher, knowing they would probably never see her again, then went to find McGonagall, who was grading tests. Once she heard the news, McGonagall announced they would all be going to McDonalds for dinner to celebrate.

The holidays only got better from there. It turned out that Emily was an agnostic, so she didn't celebrate any holidays. Though Harry privately thought this was because her family couldn't afford the spend money on presents. So they invited her to spend Christmas with them. It was one of the happiest holidays Harry could remember; he didn't even have time to feel sad for being with out parents for another year. On Christmas Eve, it snowed, great mountains of white wonder. It was beautiful. They spent the day building snow forts so big you could sit in them, having a snowball fight and just goofing off like regular kids. When they came back in, wet and exhausted, McGonagall had a fire going and two huge cups of hot chocolate.

But like all good things, it didn't last. Two days later Harry woke up to his first day of middle school.


	11. The Hell Called Middle School

The Hell Called Middle School

He was nervous; the butterflies in his stomach wouldn't go away and his hands were shacking though it wasn't at all cold. He could not remember a time when he had been this nervous. Through all the school changes, the moves, and even the time he had had to go to school in France without knowing a word of French, he had been cool and collected. It must have been the fact that he, a lowly eight-year-old, was going into 8th grade with people almost twice his age. Or the fact that he might be stuck in this area for a while, though he really didn't mind since Emily was here.

The fact was that he would be alone in a huge middle school with only Emily for company. They weren't even sure they would have the same lunch period, let alone any classes together.

Harry tried pushing these thoughts out of his mind; it would just make him even more nervous. Instead he concentrated on what to wear. He and Emily had been talking about this subject a lot the last few days; they, of course, had no clue what pre-teens wore. It would be worse for Emily, he knew, being a girl. She had decided on jeans, a plain blue t-shirt, and a jacket. Harry decided to go about the same, wearing jeans and a brown shirt. His old backpack, which featured the Star Wars characters, would stay in his closet. Instead, McGonagall had bought him a plan orange one with room enough for his new bigger books.

He was had just finished tying his shoelaces when his grandma called up to him.

"Emily is here; you had better hurry up and eat. I want to get there early."

It had been decided that Emily would ride with them to school, as her father didn't have time to do all the paperwork and things. They would get there a full hour early, so someone could show the kids and McGonagall exactly were their classes were.

The three of them ate in silence; occasionally it was broken by a nervous, "Do you have your lunch money?" from McGonagall or "Do you think this shirt makes me look too young?" from Emily.

Finally the bowls were empty and it was time to leave. Harry's stomach felt like someone had put the jelly legs jinx on in. They piled into the car for the fifteen-minute ride to the local middle school.

Highview Middle School had 1,000 student, two floors and six portables. It was by far the largest school Harry had ever attended. It looked about the same as the elementary school; Harry suspected the same designer had been used. The only real difference was the size.

McGonagall parked in the teacher's lot, remembering to hang up the ID card that prevented it from being towed.

"Are you two ready?" She asked them, her voice taking on a kinder, more human tone than her usual brisk manner.

They nodded. Harry didn't trust himself to open his mouth: he felt like he might be sick.

"Well then, we'd better go in."

She opened her door and stepped out into the cold morning. They followed.

The parking lot was almost deserted; it seemed they had arrived way ahead of time. The three trooped off across the parking lot and into the school.

They entered the main office, which was to the right of the main entrance. The first thing Harry noticed was how clean the office was. Five chairs stood against the wall, next to a large fake plant. Directly in front of them was a desk with an old blond lady sitting at it. Behind her was a hallway leading to more rooms.

"Good Morning," McGonagall said to the lady. "I'm the new teacher, Mrs. Porter, and this is my grandson Henry and his friend Emily, they're starting here."

"Oh, hello dears," the women said warmly, "yes, I was told to expect you. Here, you'll need to fill these out." She passed over a stack of papers, "while I tell these guys all about what to expect."

She turned to Harry and Emily and smiled again. "Well, as this is a little unusual, you being so young, the guidance consulter has arranged all your classes together."

Harry and Emily smile widely as that was one of the things they had been worried about, having different classes.

"Here are your schedules," she continued, passing them over, "and you have, let me see, Mrs. ... Porter for home room. Oh well, that works out nicely."

"Yes," McGonagall agreed. Harry didn't say it, but he had a sneaky suspicion his Grandma had used magic to change his homeroom.

"Oh, here's a map. If you need anything please go to the guidance counselor in her office, you'll see it on there. Well, have a good day."

It took them about five minutes to find McGonagall's room. It was square, and made of that ugly white material all schools are made of. As it had taken them so long to get there, students already sat in the desks. It was the not the first time Harry had seen this type of desks, as many of his former schools had them, but Emily stared opened mouthed at them. They were smaller than the ones at Jones Lane, with the desk part attached to the seat part.

"Wow, we're really in middle school now," Emily whispered.

When they had entered the older kids had started whispering amongst themselves, some even laughing. Then, suddenly a bell rang from far off making Harry and Emily jump, as they had never heard a bell like that before.

The rest of the students were in their seats by now, so Harry and Emily sat nervously on the edge of two near the door.

"Hello, class, I'm Professor Porter, or you can call me 'Mrs. Porter' as you do here in the States, yes?"

A blond girl, in a very short pink skirt and matching pink top had raised her hand from the back of the room.

"I just want to welcome you to Highview, Professor Porter. Are you from England?" She smiled at McGonagall with her beautifully straight white teeth.

"Yes, Miss…Hand. I moved here many years ago with my grandson, Harry, which brings me to my next point. As you will notice two new students are joining this class with me, Harry and Emily. They have skipped six grades, yes, six grades, and are starting eighth grade this semester."

The whole class now stared at Harry and Emily, who blushed deep red. 'I knew this was a bad idea' he thought.

If he had though it was bad then, he was proven wrong a hundred times by the end of the day. It was a miracle they had all classes together, or Harry would have gone and hidden under a desk. Everyone stared at them, pointing and making rude comments. They looked so out of place amongst the grown up 13 year olds, in their mini-skirts and baggy paints. Then there were the classes, Harry had always been way ahead in his classes, because of his Grandma being a teacher and a little magical help. Now, it was all way over his head.

Emily however was right on track. She was even a little too prepared for some of the classes. Harry didn't know how she did it, for he was still struggling with the basics.

"Don't worry about it," Emily said, after their Algebra class, were he hadn't understood a word, "I'll tutor you till you're top of the class."

"If you say so," Harry muttered, under his breath.

Lunch was the best part of the day by far. They got permission from the teacher on duty to go down to McGonagall's classroom and eat there. She confronted them about the other students, and whispered in Harry's ear when Emily went to the other side of the room to throw her lunch away that they would 'fix' the problem with his schoolwork at home. Meaning she'd use another easy memory spell on him, making it so he had photographic memory while he did all his homework.

The last thought Harry had before drifting of to sleep was, 'if middle school is this hard, I wonder what high school will be like.'


	12. Emily’s Secret

A/N: I'm so sorry it took months to update this story and that this chapter isn't exactly the longest in the world. As I have said many times before, tenth grade is evil, along with AP classes, and final exams. I've been so busy, I just haven't had time. Sorry! Thanks you SO much for all the wonderful reviews! I can't believe I've reached 50! It's amazing. You guys are great.

In this chapter you will finally get the answer to a question I know you all have been dying to ask. What's up with Emily? The sad part is this story is almost over, I never meant it to be long, it was originally a one-shot actually. Anyway, we've got a couple lose ends to tie up, don't worry. So anyway, on with the chapter….

Emily's Secret 

Two years later, Harry would have an answer to that question. Sure, he was only ten, but with a little help from his Grandma's wand and, of course Emily, he had made it to high school. Which was, if that's even possible, scarier then Middle School. The school seemed to be built by the same designer as all of the other schools in the area. Meaning that it was huge, ugly, and looked like a prison with windows. 2,000 kids went to Thomas Edison High School, and they all seemed to think that anyone below the age of 13 was a baby. It didn't matter to Harry though; he had Emily and his Grandma who had taken a job as a sub at the high school. At least it wasn't worse than middle school.

'Well, maybe not' Harry thought, remembering that first day of Middle School. It had only been two years ago, but felt like ten years.

Back then, he had been a naive little kid. Now he was, well, a more mature little kid. Anyway, that wasn't the point, the point was something was up with Emily and he wanted to know what it was.

They had been best friends since that day, so long ago, when he had walked into Mrs. White's classroom. Back then he hadn't realized what it meant to blush around a girl, now he did. Not that he would ever tell Em that. Anyway, that wasn't the point either.

I had all started about a month ago when Em had shown up to school with a black eye. She had said she had walked into a door. Harry hadn't believed her. Em had always had small cuts and burses on her arms, which she would brush away as being due to her clumsiness if asked. But she had never been clumsy around Harry. Something was up, and Harry didn't like it one bit.

"Harry, I know you're worried about Emily," McGonagall said, as she passed him the peas. It was dinnertime. "But I don't want you doing anything that would give us away."

She was talking about magic, of course, but didn't say it because Harry had been a little moody about his magic lately. In September he'd have to go to Hogwarts and right now that was something he didn't want to do. Emily was his best friend and he couldn't bear the thought of leaving her. He'd also be going as Harry Potter, which meant he'd probably never get to see McGonagall either if Dumbledore had anything to say about it.

"I wouldn't do anything to give us away, Gran, you know that," Harry said, annoyed. So he'd taken a little joyride on his Grandma's broom once, that didn't mean he wasn't careful. Besides; it wasn't like anyone saw him.

The doorbell rang, pulling them both out of their thoughts.

"I'll get it," Harry said, "its probably Em. We're supposed to go over some Spanish verbs."

He hated Spanish with a passion, but it was the one course Emily would not drop, and he didn't want her to take a class without him. She had told him that Spanish was a good life skill to have, whatever that meant, and that she'd help him pass if it was the last thing she did. Harry had almost forgotten how much he hated the language after she said she'd be over at six. He had it bad and he knew it.

He got up and answered the door. Sure enough it was Emily, but she looked terrible. The right side of her face was all red, as if someone had slapped her there. Both her eyes were black and her arms full of bruises. She was limping, too. When she saw Harry she started to cry.

"Emily, what happened," Harry said in horror.

Emily just cried harder and hugged him.

"Grandma," Harry yelled not knowing what else to do. McGonagall came into the hall and let out a scream. With out thinking she pulled out her want and performed some healing spells. The weird thing was that Emily didn't seem to find anything strange about this, she just cried harder.

"I think we need to talk," McGonagall said, leading them into the living room.

"I-I'm s-sorry I didn't tell y-you earlier," Emily said through her tears, "b-b-b I just couldn't. I-I didn't want you t-t h-hate me."

"Tell me what?" Harry asked in confusion. Then, figuring that that sounded insensitive, he added, "and we would never hate you."

"Go on Emily, no one will hurt you here," McGonagall coaxed.

"M-my dad, is a D-Death Eater," Emily choked out.


	13. Two Kisses

**A/N: **Well, its finally here, sorry it took so long. Thank you very much to all my reviews. I think this chapter will awnser all your questions. Thank you to my beta reader **Slytherin-Ali!**I think that's it, so hope you like this chapter.

**Warning:**_ There is some langrage in this chapter, so I am rating this chapter PG-13. Don't read it if you don't like hearing some bad langrage._

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**Two Kisses**

"HE'S A WHAT!" Harry yelled, totally caught off guard. 'Did she just say what I thought she said?' he asked himself. No, that can't be possible. Someone as perfect as Emily can't have a father who is a Death Eater. No way. But that did make sense and would explain why she was all beaten up.

"Harry." McGonagall said sharply, "Emily, are you sure?"

"Yes," Emily said softly, still crying. "He told me himself, he was not in the inner circle, b-but he was one. H-he found out about H-Harry. I took the bus, but he's co-coming. I'm so sorry."

Harry looked at his grandma, worried.

"Don't worry, we can deal with him," McGonagall assured them, pulling out her wand again.

"So you're a witch?' Harry asked, stunned.

"Yes, I've always known you were one. Every since that day you told me you were on the run from an evil wizard. I kind of put all the pieces together. I should have told you; b-but I was afraid you would hate me. Then when Dad dropped me off yesterday, he sensed your magic and I had to tell. He was killing me."

"Em, I don't hate you. I would never hate you. I-I think I love you," Harry said, not looking at her. "I think I've always loved you, ever since I first saw you."

Harry looked up to see that Emily was still crying, but through them Harry could see she was beaming.

"Oh, Harry, I love you too. I've been in love with you ever since you told me you loved Star Wars. I didn't know why, I just did." She hugged him and did something that Harry, at ten, still thought was gross. She kissed him. It was like nothing he had ever felt before; it was kind of gross, but at the same time wonderful. It was like for a second the whole world vanished and they were the only two people alive. It didn't matter that they were ten, or that Emily's dad was coming to kill him, for in that moment they were just two people in love.

"Imhm."

And then the moment ended and they were thrust back into the real world. They looked up to see McGonagall watching them, disapproving.

"Harry, this is not the time or place for this, but you are far too young to be, well, doing that. We will talk about this later," she said this all in a very stern voice but Harry could tell she was trying not to cry herself. For he knew something most of the Hogwarts population wouldn't dream of even thinking; his Grandma was really an old softy.

"Sorry," they muttered.

"Yes, well, I think we should-" McGonagall started but was interrupted by a loud bang. They had forgotten to magically lock the door and Emily's dad was here.

"Harry, Emily, I want you to stay behind me, no matter what."

"Where is he?" Emily's dad screamed, "I know that bastard is here. He ruined everything. I'll kill him."

Harry knew the man was talking about him. It was really unnerving thinking someone he hadn't even met hated him that much.

"Sir, I am going to have to ask you to get out of my house," McGonagall said in a calm voice.

"Get out of my way, bitch," the man yelled. Then he spotted Harry.

"_Crucio_," he shouted.

It was pain like nothing Harry had ever felt before. The pain was indescribable; he was screaming and rolling on the ground in pain. In the background he could hear Emily screaming too. Then the pain went away. He saw that Emily had leapt onto her father and was rolling with him on the ground.

"Meddling bitch, I'll teach you a lesson," her father cried, raising his wand and shouting two words that Harry thought he had heard before. "_Avada Kedavra!_"

In slow motion Harry saw a bolt of green light erupt from his wand and hit Emily in the chest. She fell to the ground, a look of shock on her face; she was dead before she hit the ground.

After that Harry didn't notice what was going on around him. He was trying to tell himself that it wasn't true. No it couldn't be true. Emily couldn't be dead. No way.

"Harry," his grandma said, looking at him with concern. "The police are here. I managed to tie that man up; they want you to come down for questioning. Just tell them he had a gun, you know what a gun is?"

He nodded mutely as the police lead them both out and to the station. All throughout the ride Harry thought about that kiss, that last kiss, where he had realized how much he truly loved Emily.

"Harry, can you look at me?" his grandma said. She was crying. He had never seen his grandma cry before. That just made which made whole thing sink in more. "I know this must be very hard for you, but you cannot tell them what really happened, remember that." He nodded again.

"Harry, can you please tell me what happened?" The policeman asked him when they had reached the station.

"I-I don't know," Harry muttered, "he, err, kicked me and I wasn't looking, but I think he had a gun and shot her. She was defending me."

"Why would she do that?" The policeman asked.

"Because she loved me and I loved her," Harry answered, hoping they could hear him though the tears. Because it had finally sunk in Emily, his beloved Emily was dead.

"Hey, kid, are you OK?" the man asked him, worried.

"No," Harry sobbed, "no she's dead, he killed her and now she's dead. I'll never be fine again."

Harry went to her grave every day for weeks till his Grandma made him stop. She kept telling him it was not healthy, but Harry just wanted to read the words engraved on Emily's tombstone. The words he had insisted on putting there, for he felt Emily would have loved the irony.

_I only remember two kisses - the first and the last. The first, with my love and the last, with death. The first brought happiness and the last relief!_  
-Srijit Prabhakaran


	14. Goodbyes

**Goodbyes **

"Harry?" McGonagall said, looking down at her 'grandson.' "Harry, you need to get up."

"I can't do it, Grandma, I just can't," Harry moaned. "I don't want to leave her."

"Harry, we've talked about this. No matter where you go, Emily will always be with you. This place - if you leave it, you're not leaving her, only her final resting place. Harry, she would want you to get along with you life."

"I know, I just… I miss her. I loved her. How can I ever go on with my life and forget her?"

"We both agreed that this would be the easiest way. It's not a permanent memory charm; you will remember on your eighteenth birthday. You will be able to go to Hogwarts and fulfil your destiny without being depressed by her loss."

"I know, Grandma, but I just miss her. This all sounds really cheesy, doesn't it?" Harry asked, giving her a weak smile.

"Yes, now let's get a move on. Your train leaves in only an hour."

Then she held out her hand for her grandson and together they Apparated to Kings Cross Station in London.

"Harry, come over here," McGonagall said, pulling Harry through the crowd to a janitor's closet and magically locking the door.

She pulled off the large hat and sunglasses she had used to hide her face from the magical world and gave him a strong hug. When they pulled apart Harry thought that he could see McGonagall tearing up.

"Are you ready?" She asked. Harry nodded, looking at his Grandma for a long moment, trying to remember this moment, even though he knew that he would have to forget it. "Remember, when you turn eighteen, you'll remember everything. I'll be waiting for you at Emily's grave."

Harry nodded, but she wasn't finished yet.

"Don't worry; I'll be with you wherever you go. Never forget that."

"You sound like you're about to die," Harry said laughing.

McGonagall laughed. "Harry, before we do this, I've always wanted to ask you: why do you like Star Wars so much?"

Harry gave her a funny look, "I thought that would be obvious," he said slowly. "In the movies, good always triumphs over evil. Something I've known for a long time I would always have to do. Isn't that what I'm going off to do: learn how to use the force to kill the evil wizard? Think about it, Luke, a guy from nowhere, goes on to save the universe. It's so much like my story, in a way. Oh, and I've always thought the laser things were really cool."

"Harry, you're one of a kind, you know that," McGonagall said, laughing. "Well, what does that little green guy say? Right, 'let the force be with you.'"

"Right," Harry said, "please never do that again, it's just so out of character."

McGonagall laughed, then pulled Harry into another bone crunching hug. When they broke away she pulled out her wand and performed the memory spell she had been working on for months. It was very simple; Harry would forget most of his life before that moment. He wouldn't remember who he lived with, only that he had had a good life. Little details, like the name Emily, would stay with him in the back of his mind, and he would remember them at odd moments. He would, of course, remember all the basic information, like who he was, and that he was a wizard and some of the spells he knew. Then on his eighteenth birthday all his memory would come back and they would be reunited.

Harry blinked in the light, a blank expression on his face.

"Where am I? Who are you?"

"You're at Kings Cross, it's September 1. You are about to go to Hogwarts, Harry," McGonagall said. Then she Apparated away.

"What the hell?" Harry said, looking around. He was in some kind of closet. What was he doing there? And who was that woman? She seemed so familiar. Still very puzzled he opened the door and pulling his trunk walked towards platform 9 ¾.

Almost with out realizing it he walked through the wall onto the platform and took a seat on the train. He was trying to remember what his life had been like. It was like he had suddenly appeared in that closet; everything before then was like a very blurry picture that he couldn't make out.

"Harry?" A boy said from the entrance to his compartment. He had bright red hair and freckles. For some reason Harry though he knew him.

"Yes," he said, puzzled, "do I know you?"

"Harry, it's me Ron," the boy said. Images begin coming into Harry's mind of a cosy house in the country and a red-haired family.

"Ron Weasley?" Harry asked.

"Yes, bloody hell. What happened to you? That day - you just left. And you're Harry Potter."

"I know," Harry, answered. "The weird thing is, I can't remember. Well, I remember you and your family, but I can't really remember what happened after I left. It's like someone put a memory charm on me."

Ron just looked at him like he was nuts.

"But you must remember where you were for eleven years!" He exclaimed.

"No, I can't," Harry, said, staring at him. "I can't remember where I was."


	15. Epilogue

**Epilogue **

"Potter, Harry," tiny professor Flitwick said, and the hall burst into whispers. A scrawny black haired boy went up and put the Sorting Hat on his head.

'_Interesting,_' a voice whispered in his ear, _'that's interesting. Well, you are not hard to place, which is strange. I thought I'd be in for a tough one with you, but you are a true GRYFFINDOR. Good luck.'_

Harry jumped off the stool and went to sit at the table cheering for him. Up at the staff table a strict blond lady smiled at him.

"Who's that?" Harry asked a prefect, Percy Weasley, who was next to him.

"Must be the new Transfiguration teacher, I think her name is Professor Vender."

Something in the back of Harry's mind started at that name. He looked puzzled at the professor, then something caught his eye. Professor Dumbledore was staring at the new professor too, but his eyes held none of the puzzlement Harry's did. Something about the way he looked at Professor Vender told Harry that he knew something Harry didn't, and that he was very amused by it.

At the end of Harry's first year there arose the question of where Harry would stay. Not to anyone's surprise, Professor Vender, with whom Harry had formed a very strong friendship, asked that he stay at Hogwarts. Dumbledore agreed, much to professor Snape's displeasure, for he had come to hate 'the Potter boy', as he called Harry.

To no one's surprise, Harry came in second in his class, right after Hermione Granger, one of his best friends.

In the years to come, Harry proved over and over that he was indeed a true Gryffindor. In his second year he battled the monster of Slytherin. In his third year, he come to know his godfather, who had spent a couple years in Azkaban but had been proved innocent when Peter Pettigrew was found alive, many years ago. Harry come to love his godfather and was formally adopted by him that year. Professor Vender was the one who suggested it.

In his fourth year Harry played in the Triwizard tournament and Voldemort arose. It was the death of his godfather in his fifth year that truly changed Harry.

Many people say this was the end of his childhood, but Harry would have disagreed. He never did know why, but for some reason, ever since his first day at Hogwarts, Harry never dated. He said he wasn't interested, but that never seemed right. It was almost as if he was mourning the death of someone.

The thing was that, whenever anyone would ask Harry why he was determined to kill Voldemort, he would say simply that Voldemort had killed the people he loved. Though most people thought he meant his parents, in the back of his mind he knew that was a lie. For the name Emily was always on the tip of his tongue.

Then came the day when Harry disappeared as suddenly and mysteriously as the day his parents were killed. No one ever did find out what happened to Harry Potter, the-boy-who-lived.

But the very day he disappeared a man by the name of Derek Vender and his Grandma Sara Vender were hired as a teachers in a little town in England. In a few short years they had become immersed in the community and no one could remember life with out them. Till his dying day, Derek would always say he had found the one thing he had always wanted in that little town, a place where he belonged.


End file.
